The parish history is tied very closely to Mumby parish and Mumby Chapel as, at one time, they were all part of one large ecclesiastical entity. Mumby had developed into a parish of its own, partly due to the North Sea's occassional forays into the coast and the resultant destruction of St. Leonard's church.

St. Leonard's Church was erected in 1794 out of the material from a former church then standing, but in ruins.

The church is a small building of brick and stone.

The church was rebuilt in 1866 and restored in 1891.

The church seats about 100.

Here is a photo of the church, taken by Ron Cole (who retains the copyright):

As it stands, the present Anglican parish church only has registers that date from 1665, although Bishop's transcripts go back as far as 1568. Researches should look at Mumby and Mumby Chapel records as well.

There is a Chapel St. Leonards Methodist Church, but it is technically in Skegness parish (on St. Leonards Drive). But if your ancestors were non-conformist, you will want to check it out. See our non-conformist religions page.

Chapel St. Leonards is both a village and a parish that lies on the North Sea about 7 miles north of Skegness, a mile north of Ingoldmells and two miles north of Addlethorpe parish off the A52 trunk road. Hogsthorpe parish is immediately to the west.

This is a holiday town, with all the good and bad that go with being a tourist attraction. The city sports miles of golden sand beaches and the businesses that cater to the summer visitor. In August, the village hosts a week-long carnaval festival. For folks on holiday, there are caravan parks, but no tent-camping facilities near the village. For more information, contact:

Excavated for clay for the repair of the sea banks following the floods of 1953, the flooded pit has marginal reedbeds and aquatic plants, such as water-crowfoot and great reedmace. Fifteen species of ducks have been recorded, mainly in winter. Grebes, divers and wild swans are also often seen in winter. In summer breeding species include reed and sedge warblers, lesser whitethroat, and great crested and little grebes. In August and September thousands of migrating swallows and house martins roost in the reedbeds. Screens of willows around the banks of the pits have been planted in order to reduce disturbance to birds.

Brian provides a photograph of the Chapel St. Leonard's War Memorial at Flickr.

You might enjoy reading "The Casualties Were Small - Wartime Poetry and Diaries of a Lincolnshire Seaside Villager May Hill," edited by Tom and Margaret Ambridge, publ. 2009. Available at www.ambridgebooks.co.uk.

The name is a simple Modern English Chapel St. Leonards, naming the parish after the principal church. It did not appear in the 1086 Domesday Book. However, there are those who say the parish is as ancient as any other in Lincolnshire.[A. D. Mills, "A Dictionary of English Place-Names," Oxford University Press, 1991]

Chapel St. Leonards sports an Action Group; local people who are interested in seeing that the youth of the village have a place to call their own, and it includes representatives from Lincolnshire County Council youth service, the community development officer; the community safety officer, the coastal youth council and local police. All are working to ensure that, eventually, a permanent building will be made available for youth for their own use.